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As your Chicagoland real estate agent Michael LaFido, I want to be your resource for all things real estate. Whether you are buying, selling, or investing in real estate, I am here to guide you through the process. Subscribe to this blog to learn all of the latest news from our local market and receive expert tips for buying or selling a home.

What Can Matched Pairs Tell Us About Resale Value When Selling A Home?

Home improvements are important before selling. These numbers tell the truth about how much you should invest.

Matched pairs is a term you probably haven't heard of. If you’re thinking of selling your home, it’s always wise to consider making improvements and upgrades. However, you’ve got to know where to spend your money in order to get the highest possible return. Recently, I had a client who spent about $20,000 on leaf guards that were nice but didn’t really add any value to his home.

The first thing to do when selling your home is to consult a professional like myself who knows what they’re doing. That being said, it’s always best to do a few cosmetic improvements at least. For unique properties or properties where there aren’t a lot of comparables, we recommend an appraisal prior to going on the market as well.

I work with one of the best appraisers in the Midwest, and he recently put together a thorough report about matched pairs. He wrote a report that compared five properties to five similar properties. That brings us back to the term matched pairs. These “matched pairs” were then compared to each other.

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The properties that invested in repairs ended up reaping the rewards.

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Half of the properties had minimal fixes. The other half were situations where the owner put in a significant amount of money to improve the home before selling. Some of the owners put in as much as $25,000.

The homes that had money put in to make significant improvements ended up selling a lot quicker and for a lot more money. Some owners invested $25,000 and ended up selling the home for $50,000 more than the owner who only put $5,000 into their home. A lot of those homes that weren’t invested in too much probably sat on the market for quite a while due to price adjustments.

If you have any questions for me or you’re thinking of putting your home on the market anytime soon, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I would love to hear from you soon.